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Natto/Story
Fondness Story I. Chronicler "Natto, have you written down today's observation?" "...I have, Master Attendant." Usually, in this kind of situation, I would hide my expression by wearing my mask. But today, I have no room in my mind to think about things like that. As I gazed at Master Attendant's wrinkly, calm visage, I felt an intense emotion, nothing like anything that I've felt before, surging from the depth of my heart. "For years, you've seen many scenes of hardships in place of me. It must be hard on you." Master Attendant feelingly nodded after he heard my answer and put on his usual smile, which was capable of alleviating the atmosphere around him. A few decades had passed ever since Master Attendant lost his eyesight, and I became his eyes, recording everything that happened each day wherever I go. I don't know how many scrolls I've used so far... but the more scrolls I used, the more my heart feels fulfilled. Before I realized, "recording things down" no longer feels like a duty that Master Attendant had assigned to me, but instead an activity that I truly enjoy from the bottom of my heart. Be it something that actually happened, or simply rumors I heard in the streets, all of them are brimming with the charm of this vast world. For these past few decades, I truly feel that I have lived a fulfilling life. However, I think that the time I can spend with Master Attendant like this will soon come to an end. ーー Azure Skies, Day 6. Master Attendant sat down facing west, quietly meditating for the last time. I stayed by Master Attendant's side, watching until he took his last breath, and then wrote it down in great details. After that, I set up Master Attendant's grave. This will be the last time I'm recording something down here. I pressed my hands together while facing the grave, reminisced over the things that I've experienced together with Master Attendant, and bowed deeply. From now on, I'll go on a journey. This world is tremendously vast. The world I've seen during the past decades is merely a single part of the whole thing. I want to learn more about this world and record everything down. Thus, I gathered my belongings and said my farewell to Master Attendant. Live, growing old, falling ill, then died. Human's life follows a cycle. It's the same as a leaf that falls from its tree and decompose to become a nutrient for another tree. It might sound cruel, but I think that it's precisely because human is fated to eventually die, that a lot of strange and touching stories are born into this world. (There are reasons behind everything...) I tilted my face up and took a deep breath. From now on, Master Attendant is no longer by my side. But his feelings will stay in my heart. The memories I had with Master Attendant makes me fraught with emotion, and my lips naturally formed a smile. "Master Attendant... I'll be going now." II. Traveler Originally, I'll be able to cross the border between Gloriville and Light Kingdom today. Unfortunately, God wasn't so kind to make the weather beautiful and instead, rain came pouring down. A layer of mist rose up in the forest. Unable to see the path, I could not continue onwards. I protected the bag that stored my books and scrolls. I scrambled and darted underneath the roof of a grass house located in the mountain field. The house was quaint but presently, quite a number of travellers were squeezing inside there. Where is everyone heading to? What stories do they have? I searched for my incomplete scroll and brush. Curiously, I examined the surrounding people, and unexpectedly discovered a girl who was writing something with a pencil and paper in the corner. Almost as if she sensed that my eyes were on her, she looked up. Under her rounded-glasses were a pair of shimmering eyes that intercepted my vision. She walked towards where I was and stood firmly next to me. She looked at me, rather intrigued. "Nice to meet you." I awkwardly nodded at her. Rarely do I ever talk to girls. I wrote what I saw and heard halfway and stood at my original spot in a stunted manner, unsure of what should I do. "What are you writing? Is it a novel or a travelogue?" She questioned. I kept my scroll. "It's the thoughts and feelings I had today... almost like a diary of sort." "Eh, writing a diary in broad daylight? What a rather unique way." She was ruminating as if she had thought of something. "I'm Milk Tea, a travelling writer. If you don't mind, may I take a look at the text you jot down?" I froze. I've never thought anyone would raise this request in my life. "I'm Natto. As for the text, it's...alright." "Eh, really?!" On the other hand, Milk Tea was shocked. Seemingly, she may not have thought that I'll accept her request. For her to feel more affirmed, I placed the scrolls on her soft hands. "Take a look." I was kinda nervous and beads of sweat were secreting out of my hands. Although I have been writing for years, my work has always just ended up as mere documentations. Thanks to my lack of imagination, the many interesting stories I've written down did not exhibit that liveliness when people read them. She, being a real writer, would no doubt possess high mastery over writing. If I can just obtain a one or two sentences of guidance, it would be superb. III. Treasure Explorer "This...is extremely interesting!" From the bottom of her heart, Milk Tea took a deep breath and exclaimed. "Although most people don't look from this angle, but to be able to record exactly everything in this text really makes anyone feel touch after reading it." "Yeah, this really allows one to witness how vast the world is." "Thanks-thanks..." As I scratched my hair, my face felt a little hot. I inserted my hand into the pocket to find my mask. "Mr. Natto's texts are really a treasure in this world." Satisfied, Milk Tea returned the scrolls to me. "In comparison, my travelogue appears to only scratch the surface. For me, I'm going work harder on it, okay." "Oh...eheheh." "Oh, right. As an exchange, Mr. Natto should take a look at my works...Mr. Natto?" "This amount of praise is kinda superfluous..." I wasn't used to being praised by others. It feels as though my face is gonna burn up, and I can only use the mask to hide my face. Milk Tea passed a book with a bind to me. "Romeo and Juliet?" "Yep, this is an adventure novel. This sample publication was just completed. While the editor says it is perfect, I feel something's lacking..." I flipped open the page. *plop* *plop* *plop* *plop* *plop* *plop* Unconsciously, I was absorbed into the world described by Milk Tea. The seemingly boundless imagination coupled with the development of the character's relationship is enough to prevent anyone from putting down the book. Love and adventure. Grudges and conflicts. Every aspect of the plot was arranged in a very suitable manner. Once I unconsciously flipped to the end of the book, the heavy rain has already ceased. The sunlight that poured through the leaves was already dispersed on the wet ground. Travelers, who were seeking refuge from the rain, left one by one. On the other hand, the story's plot made me forget the flow of time. Milk Tea, who was next to me, only sat there and waited for me to finish reading, never uttering a word. Unknowingly, she was holding a pencil and jotting down something. "Amazing..." Still hungry for more, I passed the book back to Milk Tea. The allure of the story was still entrapped in my mind. This feeling, I must record it down afterwards. "Really, thanks." "Milk Tea's story is the true treasure after all." I shifted my mask aside and spoke softly. If the words written by Milk Tea were like resplendent and shining diamonds, then the travelogue I wrote are akin to mud stones anyone can find at the side of the road. "It's just that..." "It's just what?" Milk Tea's eyes were shining in interest. "Eh, oh...There's a group called "chronicler" in the story right? Although the description tells us that the organization is quite large, there isn't any development in the story." I tried to organized my words as much as I can. "As long as anyone has a strong passion in travelling and wants to explore the world, they can join. Members would also move around the whole world..." "However, the members I described are only Romeo and Juliet. This makes no sense." Milk Tea continued where I left off. "This is it!" IV. Creator "Will this be of help?" Anxious, I asked. Actually, even without any rework, Romeo and Juliet is already sufficient to be considered as an amazing novel. I'm not sure whether this act of nitpicking will upset others. "You've provided a great help. But it's just that--" A very troubled look materialised on Milk Tea's face. "About half of my novel is derived from what I see in real life. Thereafter, I used them to make something new. But this organisation is somthing never seen before..." She suddenly quieten down, seemingly hesitant. My eyes lit up and I understood what she meant. 　 "You wanna...create one?" "Let's create one!" It was almost as if we opened our mouths concurrently. This is the reason why "Chronicler" was brought into this world. "You're here, welcome." Seeing Umeshu stand at the door, I took the luggage off her hand and made a welcome gesture. This was the first time "Chronicler tea session" was organised in Maple Inn as scheduled. During this year of making preparation, Milk Tea and I travelled the world separately and gave out the invitation letter for the tea session to individuals we feel are suitable. What made us relieved was that our letters received a response from those Food Souls. While there weren'tmany people, the gathering is a rather bustling one. During my travel, I came across the solo traveller, Umeshu and the eccentric artist, Hot Dog. Milk Tea brought the skilful singer, Ddeokbokki and the skilful dancer, Kimchi. Umeshu was the last to arrive. She sat in front of the short table and the bustling tea session thus begun. The members narrated what they see and heard. The world, akin to a giant artwork, was rolled out and showcased to us all. The location's geography, traditions, people as well as the sad and happy stories behind them; none of them failed to invoke my curiosity. The secrets of nature, the link between humans and Food Souls, human's resolution is fighting the Fallen Angels... And it's because of their existence that made the world vast. Afterwards-- Me, or should I say we, the "Chroniclers". Regardless what is the future's destiny, we shall record down everything that has happened after viewing them at different angles. We'll show everyone in the world the cruelty and beauty we have witnessed. V. Natto The "Chronicler Tea session" was created in a collaboration between Natto and Milk Tea. It's a gathering for Food Souls, who love travelling the world, to communicate with each other what they seen and heard. As such, the members are called "Chronicler". Although the organisation remains neutral to everything in the world，it wouldn't demand its members to have a certain mentality or align themselves with something. 6 months before the tea session commence, the creators would send out invitation letters to confirm the location. Even if any Food Souls do not receive the letter, they can still join this tea session that takes place once every 3 years, as long as they have a strong passion for travelling and to explore this vast world. Every time the tea session ends, the "chronicler", Natto, would compile the conversation's content into a book and place them inside Maple Inn. Udon open her fingers and count the time till the next tea session occur, waiting for Natto to step into the Inn once more. When they meet, she'll undoubtedly pester Natto to pass the book he wrote to her. Naturally, Natto is more than happy. He'll sit at Udon's side and talk to her for the whole day, until Udon is sick of it. Whatever he promise, he'll do it. This is also why he choose to store everything the "Chronicler" have in Maple Inn. Regardless whether Natto gets to meet someone similar to him like Milk Tea and Umeshu in his journey, getting to know the candid Food Soul, Udon also falls into this category. Moreover, it's also considered as something lucky in Natto's lifetime. His cherish for Udon is no less than the expectations Udon place on him, her friend. Yet, the world will never cease to spin. Perhaps neither Natto and the "chroniclers" themselves would also stop. By right, travelling signifies encounter and farewell, and the latter would also signify a reunion next time. Natto will not stay in an area for too long. Same as always, he'll record anything that he deems meaningful. Category:Food Soul Story